Jeff Ermann
Point Guard
Offensive Game:
Jeff is a point guard. A real point
guard. Dangerous with the outside shot.
Dangerous with the drive. Dangerous with the pass.
Dangerous in transition. Dangerous in how he uses his
teammates. In other words, A POINT GUARD.
Jeff is very quick, with a great dribble,
a strong drive, and the ability to take pull-up jumpers with
seemingly little effort. He has several fakes, uses
his body well, and is dangerous as a scorer and as a passer
in equal measure.
His outside shot is exceptional, and he is
also alert to make the extra pass along the outside after a
kick-out. He's good in the pick-and-roll game,
although perhaps a bit more as a scorer than a passer.
In a late game, he's a clutch kind of
player, although in such a situation, he could be either the
hero or the goat. He can get you into any game.
Defensive Game:
Defensively, Jeff does what he needs to
do; if that's guard a big man, so be it. He'll
generally take a higher-level offensive player, even if it
is a bit of a mismatch. He's got good strength, and
can hold his own in the post. He's strong as a
rebounder, and can go up multiple times after a rebound or
loose ball.
In the open court, good offensive speed
can catch him on his heels a bit, and his size prevents him
from being a shot-blocker. If you can keep him on his
heels, you give yourself the best chance.
The Mental Game:
Jeff is mentally strong, capable, and
smart. However, if you take him out of his productive
roles, and eliminate his touches, you can rattle him
mentally. He needs the ball to be moving and the team
to be working as one for him to fall into his natural state.
If someone is willing to dribble the air out of the ball,
Jeff can fall out of focus. He can also get
out-of-focus if his offensive game deteriorates.
If he's in focus, though, he's tough as
nails...the nails he's busy hammering into your coffin.
At his best:
...he's a top-notch offensive threat, with
deep range, a power drive, and a keen sense of complete
offensive awareness.
At his worst:
...he'll be experiencing brain-drain;
slow ball movement and people pounding the air out of the
ball render him almost catatonic.
Strategy for playing with him:
Generally, I detest playing on the same
team as other point guards. Jeff is one of the most
glowing exceptions, because playing alongside of him will
not take another point guard out of their own game, but will
actually enhance it, because Jeff's skills allow him to
seamlessly drift between the point guard and the two-guard
spots.
However, Jeff is more effective when he's
playing point, so even though I'm not going to change my
game up to much, it's better to let him be the initiator,
and try to use pick-and-pops to free him up while playing my
own position.
In the clutch, put the ball in his hands,
and trust him to do the right thing. He's the best
clutch distributor around, and he's solid in the role of
clutch shooter/scorer.
Strategy for playing against him:
Keep the ball out of his hands. Deny
the ball up the court, and force him to give the ball up
early (if you can). Try to play LOWER than him - stay
extremely low, and try to control pace. If you do
this, you'll have to pick him up early, because once he gets
in shooting range, he'll shoot over anyone trying to play
low.
Try to keep him out of the lane and on the
perimeter. If that means trapping, then trap.
You really need a concentrated team defensive effort to shut
him down.
Comparable Pro: Chauncey Billups
Last updated: November 17, 2008
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